Provisional Translation

Q.

Regarding the report from the Financial System Council’s working group, media report said that the FSA has calculated that asset building of 15 million to 30 million yen is deemed necessary, and it was submitted to the working group on April 12. Do you have any comments on this?

A.

The report you are talking about is not the final one. You’re talking about a report that’s still in progress. That figure is a trial calculation, made after putting in place fixed assumptions of expenditures and income after retirement, regarding what degree of asset building is necessary in order to live an affluent lifestyle in old age. Therefore, we have acknowledged that it does not indicate a uniform asset building amount for all individuals. In any case, this may cause misunderstandings and concern to citizens, so we are seeking to provide thorough explanations and discussions.

Q.

There are of course many citizens who feel concerned when numbers like 20 million yen, and now 30 million yen, are being released. You’ve said those trial calculations do not have much meaning, and the government’s stance is that citizens can adequately live on the pension. Has there been any change in that?

A.

It is basically as you have just said. The situation is different from person to person, as some people live with their families, and some have paid off their housing loans. Food expenses from the age of 65 are said to be uniform, but that’s doubtful. An elderly person who were asked if his food expense at 65 was the same at 90, and he thought you were joking. Because the way people make expenditures changes according to the person and the age, I think there will invariably be problems releasing a uniform average. As such, the problem is with oversimplified expressions that may be taken to mean people will be 50 thousand yen short a month, or you’ll face hardships without 20 million yen.Because we feel that this differs from the basic stance of the government, we have said that we do not accept this proposal, and do not refer to that material. We do not feel that this average is something that should be used for reference.